Saturday, May 24, 2014

Royal Court of China - Off the Beat'n Path ep (1986, Desperation)

The name Royal Court of China might ring a bell for you fanciers of late '80s hard rock, albeit far from household moniker status. They made minor ripples with two albums for A&M, but before those came this ep, seeped in no small shortage of Americana tendencies. In fact, the commencing "The Lottery" possesses a pronounced spaghetti western tact, that's hard to discern whether it's contrived or genuine. "Take Me Down" follows suit, but by the time ...Beat'n Path's high water mark, "Forget Me Nots" kicks in on side two, RCoC ditch the hick factor almost entirely and settle on something vaguely on the same wavelength as Green On Red. A Yardbirds rendition closes this affair out. There are few if any revelations here, but I thought this might be of interest to some of you. Enjoy (or not).

01. The Lottery
02. Take Me Down
03. I'm Not at Home
04. Forget Me Nots
05. Television Gone
06. Off the Beat'n Path
07. Heart Full of Soul